Arsenal thrashed 3-0 by Brighton as Mikel Arteta’s horrible choice backfires in upset
Arsenal were thrashed 3-0 by Brighton and Hove Albion to show Mikel Arteta’s side certainly aren’t Invincible in a staggering upset.
Mikel Arteta’s reigning Premier League champions and last season’s runners-up Manchester City both had 100% records going into this weekend’s round of fixtures – the last before a three-week international break. But Enzo Maresca’s City can now go three points clear at the top of the table with a win against Sunderland tomorrow afternoon, after the Gunners slumped to a miserable defeat on the south coast, which has ignited the title race.
Two first-half strikes from Pascal Gross and Charalampos Kostoulas gave Brighton a commanding lead at the break, after they dominated the champions from the first whistle. And after the interval, Chema Andres made it three for the home side, as Arsenal were ripped to pieces beside the seaside, with one decision by Arteta looking like a terrible mistake once the dust had settled on a shocking loss.
Brighton’s midfielder Chema Andres celebrates scoring his team’s third goal(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
JOIN US ON FB! Get all the best sports news and much more on our Facebook page
He brought both Bruno Guimaraes and Jurrien Timber into his team for their first starts of the season, as Myles Lewis-Skelly was relegated to the bench to accommodate the former Newcastle captain, and Ben White missed out through injury.
Yet as Arsenal legend Paul Merson said on Sky Sports, both Guimaraes and Timber looked “a million miles off it”, and totally unable to cope with the physicality of Brighton and their relentless press. The hapless pair were dragged off before an hour, with Martin Zubimendi and Mikel Merino replacing them.
Brighton – marking their 125th birthday and wearing a special kit inspired by their colours worn in 1901 – were coming off the back of a 3-2 comeback win away at Old Trafford, which dumped Manchester United out of the Carabao Cup, and a thumping 5-0 triumph over Coventry City last Friday. That victory equalled the Seagulls’ biggest Premier League away win and took their tally to 13 goals from their opening four matches, a club record, making them the top scorers in the division.
Martin Odegaard of Arsenal and team-mates look dejected during the hammering by Brighton(Image: James Marsh/Shutterstock)
Arsenal meanwhile – seeking a 10th consecutive league victory for the first time since 2002 – had conceded just twice in their previous nine league games, despite the absence of key centre-back William Saliba, and only once so far this season. But the Gunners soon found out exactly why Fabian Hurzeler’s side are such an attacking threat.
In the opening stages, some uncharacteristically sloppy play at the back saw Arsenal concede three attempts on goal – one on target. David Raya meanwhile was very jittery in goal, passing the ball straight to Brighton shirts and inviting pressure.
And in the 31st minute, the home side took the lead. Midfield marvel Gross – who has now scored four goals in his last five games – took aim from around 20 yards out with a shot that evaded the outstretched hand of Raya and went in off the post.
Pascal Gross of Brighton opened the scoring against Arsenal with a fine strike(Image: Getty Images)
Former Chelsea and England striker Chris Sutton, speaking on BBC Final Score, said: “He’s an amazing player, Gross. Ran the show at Old Trafford on Wednesday. I think Raya could have done better and [Riccardo] Calafiori could’ve closed him down.”
Ex-Hull City defender Curtis Davies outlined Arsenal’s errors on BBC Radio 5 Live. He said: “They’ve got [Ezri] Konsa and Gabriel in there, but as it’s played into the middle [Pascal] Struijk picks up the ball and turns straight on it. It leaves him enough space to just get his head up and slot it into the bottom right hand corner. What a finish from Gross but the two arsenal centre-halves will be frustrated by that.”
Arteta cut a frustrated figure on the touchline, with his side earning more possession, but unable to fashion any chances. And just on the stroke of half-time, things got even worse for the Spanish coach. After Bukayo Saka finally called Brighton keeper Bart Verbruggen into action with a save, the Seagulls countered and in-form striker Kostoulas drilled home from 25 yards, with Raya left with no chance.
Commentating on BBC Final Score, former Brighton striker Glenn Murray observed: “Brighton are having a really good moment, scoring the most goals in the Premier League. They seem to understand the manager’s high press. Arsenal just don’t seem to be able to get to grips with Brighton’s hard press.”
Premier League pundit Theo Walcott was blunt about his former side Arsenal. He said: “Brighton have come out of the traps and they have made Arsenal really uncomfortable. Raya looks shaky, that’s had an effect on how Arsenal have played in midfield, and they’ve got a lot of work to do – but Brighton have been brilliant.”
Arsenal were miles off the pace. And in the 57th minute, Chema Andres, on his first Premier League start, headed home unmarked from a Gross cross, with the Spanish midfielder towered over Gabriel as Calafiori and Martin Odegaard were ball-watching.
Charalampos Kostoulas doubled Brighton’s lead(Image: Getty Images)
Former Liverpool midfielder and Premier League pundit Don Hutchison said: “Arsenal are absolutely rattled and it’s been a brilliant performance from the home side. Chema Andres is completely unmarked at the far post, he doesn’t really need to move and it’s a simple finish to make it three.”
Arteta rang the changes as he tried to salvage something from the game, first by taking off Guimaraes and Timber for Zubimendi and Merino – a peculiar defensive substitution that left many Gunners fans scratching their heads online.
With time ticking down, he finally opted for attacking players, bringing Viktor Gyokeres and Eberechi Eze on for Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard off, then teen prodigy Max Dowman for Bukayo Saka. But it was too little too late, and if anything, Brighton should have taken their chances to make it 4-0. By the time the final whistle went, Arsenal were begging for the onslaught to end.
